Bonham Carter feels fit for a queen

'Speech' gets actress talking up royal role

Royal leads Colin Firth and Helena Bonham Carter, accompanied by Geoffrey Rush, Timothy Spall and Ben Kingsley, descended upon the London Film Fest on Thursday for the Euro preem of “The King’s Speech.” Helmer Tom Hooper explained how the pic’s scribe, David Seidler, sought approval from George VI’s widow for the project. The then-Queen Mother okayed it, with a personal clause — that it not be completed in her lifetime. Hooper joked, “So David waited, little realizing the Queen Mother would live to 186!”

Bonham Carter confirmed that she now only plays queens: “I certainly would never want to be royal, even though I effortlessly am at times! It was partly why I did play it, as I felt I could behave outrageously, and it would be accepted as ‘she’s getting into her part!'”